


Finding Paradise

by Chanyeooh



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hell, Comedy, Fluff, Hellhounds, M/M, Romance, Taco Bell
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:27:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27225793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chanyeooh/pseuds/Chanyeooh
Summary: Where Park Chanyeol, the devil himself, leaves his most dangerous hellhound in the care of a new and emerging pet-sitter.
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol
Comments: 15
Kudos: 112
Collections: EXO MONSTERFEST 2020





	Finding Paradise

**Author's Note:**

> Firstly, I would like thank the following people for the existence of this story. (If you end up hating it, these are also the people to blame ;; dont @ me): 
> 
> A certain duck for always being there.  
> A certain cook for telling me it’s worth writing.  
> A certain puppy for listening to my ideas and worries and being adorable in general.
> 
> Secondly, I would like to thank the mods for working so hard to organise the fest every year and being the sweetest people ever. I thank Mod Were, especially, for their really nice feedback.
> 
> Lastly, I apologise to my dear prompter for this was probably not what they had in mind. ;;

When Jongin entered into the office all the way up on the 666th floor, he wasn't surprised to find the seat behind the desk empty. The bright fluorescent light filling the room pricked his eyes, instantly giving him a mild headache. However, he knew that was kind of the point of it.

He walked deeper into the room and only stopped before the wooden table. As he fixed the askew nameplate on the desk, one that read 'The Devil', he spoke up, "You know, Chanyeol, this trick is old. I know you're there."

"Dammit," groaned the invisible being before appearing into the empty chair. His white hair was slicked back and his red eyes directed a deathly glare towards Jongin. It would have had anybody else peeing their pants. "I don't want to deal with anyone today. I was up last night watching Lucifer and I am very sleep deprived."

Jongin sighed and took a seat in front of the other. "Chanyeol, this is important."

The Devil chose to ignore the demon in favour of studying his freshly manicured nails. "Honestly, this Tom Ellis guy is the closest they have ever gotten to matching my handsomeness."

"Chanyeol," Jongin clicked his tongue.

"What?" Chanyeol finally looked at him after rolling his eyes.

"Here. Go through this," replied the other, producing a sheet of paper out of thin air. "Heechul at Monster Keeping has filed a complaint."

The Devil took the sheet into his hands and began to read out loud. " _The earnings of the monster keeping facility have halved with the opening of that store. Demons keep threatening me to lower prices or else they'll go to the new place."_ Chanyeol raised his eyebrows, not understanding.

"Someone opened a pet keeping store," Jongin explained. "You can leave your monsters with them for however long you need to and they charge a lot less than the official monster keeping facility. They even groom them."

Chanyeol leaned back and folded his hands into his lap. It was a serious situation after all. A good part of the revenue to run hell came from the official facility. "How was this allowed?"

"Since we don't have any laws here and it all depends on your word, I took the pains of doing some research," Jongin answered and brought out a bunch of papers. "These are the documents for the store." He then pointed to the signature at bottom. "Signed and approved by you."

Chanyeol grabbed the sheets to examine them. It really was his sign, done in hellfire that could only be possessed by him. "I don't remember ever reading these."

"Of course you don't," scoffed Jongin. "Look at the date."

"19th July?" read Chanyeol.

"Yeah, 19th July," said the demon. "I will have to refresh your memories. On 18th of July, exactly a month ago, your lactose intolerant self ate an entire cheesecake. You spent all of the next day running back and forth from your office to the loo."

"That... is true. That happened. Yes," agreed Chanyeol, seeing there was no way of denying it. That day, he hadn't been able to do a lot of work. He simply signed whatever was put on his desk. It had been very embarrassing, especially since the entire staff here at the main administration building of hell came to know about it.

"So this is it," Jongin shook his head. "What do we do? You can't take your word back once you've already given it. In hellfire at that."

"Yeah," Chanyeol rubbed his chin, looking into the distance thoughtfully. "We'll have to come up with some other way to get rid of that store."

"I tried and couldn't think of anything," shrugged the demon.

The devil continued to gaze somewhere far off. "I know what we can do."

The sharpness of Chanyeol's eyes made Jongin worry. "What are you thinking?"

***

The two stood in the elevator with soft jazz playing in the background. The button for basement one, which had been pressed by Chanyeol earlier, glowed red in the dim lighting. Jongin looked at the Devil's reflection on the silver elevator door. He looked like a human rebel in his leather jacket and ripped jeans.

"Why are we going to the monster keeping facility?" he asked after a long period of confusion. He assumed that was where they were heading for the facility was located in the basement.

"To bring out one of my monsters," replied Chanyeol, as if that explained everything.

"And how will that help?"

"Its not just any monster. We are talking about my most ferocious and dangerous hellhounds who will easily wreck that new place," grinned the Devil, side-eyeing his friend.

Jongin's mouth formed a small 'o'. Chanyeol's hellhounds, the guards of the hell, were feared by many. Like their owner, they could choose not to be seen by any eyes which is why most demons or spirits, including Jongin, hadn't seen them. He rejoiced at the idea of meeting them.

The elevator opened to reveal the facility lobby. The space was littered with cages that contained small hamster like monsters. Between all of the cages, Heechul sat behind his desk, drinking something through a straw.

Upon spotting Chanyeol, his eyes grew wide. "Oh! Thank God you're here, sir."

"I'd rather you thank me for that," Jongin muttered as the two walked towards the facility keeper.

Choosing to ignore him, Heechul directed his words towards Chanyeol. "Many of our clients have left us. We've never faced this kind of competition."

"Don't worry. I'll take care of it," spoke the Devil, patting Heechul's shoulder. "For now, I need the keys to you-know-what."

The monster keeper blinked before ducking behind his desk to fish out a bunch of keys. "Be careful."

Keys in his hand, Chanyeol nodded and headed down the hallway with Jongin on his toes. The facility was huge with many rooms. Each of the rooms matched the kind of environment the particular monsters preferred. There was no way the new shop was able to match that, thought Jongin. Yet, it _was_ stealing their clientele.

It was only upon reaching the last door that Chanyeol stopped. Jongin watched in anticipation as the Devil entered and gestured the demon in. It was a plain looking room with soil for floor. Half of it was barred. On the other side of the bars sat two huge, wolf-like monsters with coat darker than the night. Their red eyes were trained onto the devil as if they were waiting for instructions from their master.

"This is Dip and Doo," explained Chanyeοl. "They are resting for a little while. I don't like more than a few of them working at a time."

Jongin nodded. "So which of them is the ferocious one?"

"Oh, it's not them," chuckled the white-haired man and headed to the door near the other corner that Jongin hadn't noticed before.

The Devil took out one of the keys given to him by Heechul and inserted it into the lock. Behind the door was another one that required a separate key.

"That's a lot of protection," the demon commented.

"Trust me, it's necessary. You'll see," replied Chanyeol.

The room they entered was similar to the previous one but this time only with a tiny, empty cage in the corner. In the centre of the room sat a small black puppy. With its adorable shiny eyes, it had to be the cutest monster Jongin had ever seen.

"Say hi to," Chanyeol paused to contort his face in hatred, "Toben."

"Chanyeol," sighed the demon in disbelief. He knew the Devil was prone to exaggeration, but not to this level. "You said that the hellhound is supposed to be dangerous." Jongin walked towards the puppy who looked back at him curiously. "This is a little baby."

Chanyeol frowned at his words. "No, he's not."

Jongin cooed at the pup before he proceeded to pick him up into his arms. "Aren't you a little baby, huh?"

"Jongin, what in hell. You shouldn't—" Chanyeol started to warn the other but it was already too late. Toben had blown fire into the demon's face. Jongin, in response, had let go off the hellhound and stood shrieking at his spot.

Chanyeol only moved to check on him when he quieted down and found the demon staring at him with tears in his eyes and one of his eyebrows missing.

"I told you he's a vicious one," sighed Chanyeol and shook his head. He didn't have to worry about Jongin's injury for he was, after all, an immortal being. Being a demon, he would heal in minutes. "Let me get him into his cage."

As it turned out, getting Toben into his cage was a huge task in itself, especially when the hellhound kept disappearing to confuse his owner. At one point, Chanyeol decided to turn invisible too. If it wasn't for all the noise around him, Jongin would have no idea about what was going on.

When he saw the door of the cage being opened and then bolted shut, he spoke, "Are you done, Chanyeol?"

"No," came a tired voice from inside the cage. "Get me out of here."

"How in hell did you get in there?" frowned the demon and moved to open the latch. This was followed by another round of cat and mouse chase.

An eternity seemed to have passed before Chanyeol showed himself sporting scratches on his face and dusted his jacket. He picked up the tightly shut cage which was rattling with the monster inside.

"Let's go," he pronounced.

***

As the two walked together through the burning hot streets of hell, Chanyeol asked, "Where exactly is this store?"

"You know the empty space besides taco bell?" Jongin raised his eyebrows.

Chanyeol nodded.

"That's where," continued the demon. "It's way smaller than the facility but it's a good location, close to every place here in Pandemonium."

Pandemonium was the very capital of hell from which Chanyeol ruled. It was the strongest demons that resided here. "This must be one reason they are popular," wondered the Devil.

Jongin merely shrugged and led the way. Eventually, they reached a busy street. Off the side, there was a staircase that led to a pathway one level below. Lining the pathway were two shops, with Taco Bell being the first.

"Paradise by Baekhyun," read Chanyeol from the pink signboard of the second shop. He turned to face his companion. "This sounds like a body care line."

"Well, it's a pet keeping shop," replied Jongin dryly and moved to push the glass door open.

The inside of the building, like the outside, was pink. Everything from the walls to the furniture was a pastel shade of the colour. Only the carpet in the room was a light green.

While next to the door there was a visitor's desk, the place seemed to lack a proper reception area. Chanyeol and Jongin stood besides it and observed the surroundings as they waited for somebody to approach them.

The large room was filled with stuffed toys the shape of monsters, knee-level round tables and what looked like children's books. Rather than a pet keeping space, it seemed like a nursery. The only visible difference was the presence of actual, uncaged monsters by the end of the room. There were only a few of them but they all sat quietly, munching on the food placed in bowls.

Chanyeol and Jongin exchanged a look. Leaving monsters unattended in the open was a pretty dangerous thing to do. Having smelt the food, Toben shook his cage harder, forcing the white-haired man to place it on the carpet.

After he did so, a demon finally walked out from one of the doors. The man was shorter than either of them and wore a pink sweater with some beige pants. Matching his sweater was the mop of shining pink hair on his head. As the demon lifted his face to look at them, his droopy eyes went wide.

"The devil," he gasped.

Jongin waited for Chanyeol to respond, however, when he didn't utter a word, he turned around questioningly. Chanyeol was staring at the demon who entered expressionlessly, betraying absolutely no emotions. Standing besides him, however, Jongin could see that his ears were a pink brighter than the newcomer's hair. He had to elbow Chanyeol in order to break him out of his daze.

As if just processing the man's words, the white-haired man responded in a shaky voice, "Y-Yes, it's me, Chanyeol, the devil. And I take it that you're the owner of this place."

Having overcome his shock, the demon hopped towards them with his peach coloured socks. Smiling brightly, he introduced, "I'm Baekhyun. And you are?" His question was directed towards Jongin.

"Uh," Jongin began sheepishly, his hand reaching out to touch his half burnt eyebrow. "You don't know me? I'm Jongin. Sometimes people call me Beelzebub. I'm sort of Chanyeol's only friend and assistant."

Baekhyun's mouth formed an 'O' shape before he faced Chanyeol again. "How can I help you, today, Mr. Devil?"

"Uh, call me Chanyeol. We heard about your shop, Baekhyun," Chanyeol's voice was back to his normal, haughty one, yet it still held hints of hesitance. "We're here to leave a monster. His name is Toben." He picked up the cage and lifted it to show Toben inside.

Baekhyun bent his body so that his face was right in front of the hellhound's. "He's adorable."

"He is," The devil smiled slyly and put the cage down. "He won't give you _any_ trouble at all."

Baekhyun giggled somewhat cutely. "I hope so."

Jongin looked at him closely before speaking in a rather suspicious tone, "You know, you don't look too evil for a demon."

The petkeeper blushed as if embarrassed and quickly explained. "I get that a lot. Trust me, I'm _very_ evil."

Jongin titled his head. "Really?"

"Yeah," he began. "Just this morning, I put the milk in the bowl... before I put the cereal."

Jongin's mouth dropped open. He was pretty evil, after all. Chanyeol seemed surprised to. Before his partner in crime could say something else, though, the Devil spoke, "So we'll pick up Toben tomorrow."

Baekhyun moved forward to collect the cage. With the hellhound jumping inside, it seemed like he was having a hard time holding it. He sent them a boxy smile anyway. "You can pay when you come to collect him."

"Sure, Baekhyun," voiced Chanyeol, putting on what Jongin recognised as his 'charming' smile.

A few minutes later, the two sat at taco bell with a burrito each in their hands. The place was relatively empty. The few demons that were there occasionally peeped in Chanyeol's direction. Someone took a picture.

"You always go for the angelic ones," sighed Jongin after swallowing the bite he took.

"I don't go for anyone," the devil's reply was calm.

"I know you," scoffed the demon. "I can tell when you're crushing."

"I'm the devil. I'm older than the very word crush." Chanyeol ate with a disregard towards the world.

"You know that has dairy right?"

"Yes."

***

The next day, Jongin refused to accompany Chanyeol to shop. "By now Toben must have burnt the shop down. Your love will be sad. Comfort him yourselves and make your move."

"No one is making a move on anyone," responded the Devil as he left his office. Demons around the administrative area in Pandemonium were used to seeing him so no one looked too long even if they recognised him.

The curious glances increased the further he got. It would've been nice if hell had vehicles but they didn't function well in the heat of the place. Mostly, lack of transport never posed a problem for demons could be very quick if they wanted to and didn't tire easily.

When he reached the staircase that led to the pet shop, Chanyeol was surprised to find it intact from the outside. He made his way towards the door to assess the situation on the inside. Despite the tinted glass fittings, it wasn't possible to gauge much owing to the darkness from within.

The devil swung the door open and stepped inside. After the few seconds it took to adjust his vision, he spotted Baekhyun sitting on the carpet in the middle of the room. The demon's back faced him.

Chanyeol was about to speak up when he heard the pink haired demon sniffle. His eyes widened. He took a few steps forwards. "Baekhyun..."

Hearing his name being called, the pet-keeper slowly turned his head in Chanyeol's direction. "Mr. Devil?" he let out in a trembling voice.

"Call me Chanyeol," he spoke and closed the distance between them. He continued once he stood over the demon, "What happened? What did Toben do?"

"Toben? Actually I," Baekhyun paused to weep. "I... I stubbed my pinky toe. It was so dark when I came in that I didn't see the table before me."

Chanyeol blinked, surprised. "Where... is Toben?"

"Toben..." repeated Baekhyun before he remembered that the Devil was here to collect his pet monster. He quickly stood up and wiped his tears. Stumbling over his feet, he made his way towards a corner to turn the light switch on.

Once light filled the area, Chanyeol was able to see a few free roaming monsters in the room. Toben was not amongst them. He looked at Baekhyun who leaned against the wall. "Does it hurt that much?"

The demon nodded with a small pout on his face, "It's okay, it'll go away in a few minutes. I'm just bad at handling pain."

"You should be a little more careful in the dark," Chanyeol responded.

Baekhyun nodded again in consideration before speaking. "Since you're here, let me bring Toben." With that, he called out the hellhound's name loudly. A few seconds later, the pet flap on one of the doors shook and Toben emerged through it. Absolutely disregarding Chanyeol, he went to sit by the pet keeper.

"What a good boy," chirped Baekhyun and affectionately pet the hellhound's head. In response, Toben barked happily.

Watching the scene before him, Chanyeol's eyelids touched the roof. He shuddered, "What is happening..."

Baekhyun innocently smiled at him as he lifted the hellhound into his arms, "Hm?"

"Toben doesn't... bark, ever. He..." The devil was speechless and found it hard to complete his sentence. "What did you do?"

"What do you mean? Are you okay, Mr.Dev— Chanyeol?" Baekhyun bounced Toben in arms like he was a baby.

"I— Wow. Okay. Listen to me," Chanyeol looked at the demon with a very serious expression and spoke in a rather accusatory manner. "I lied when I said Toben is well behaved. He isn't like this. He runs wild, burns things up and doesn't follows commands. He would never respond to his name much less climb into anyone's arms this way. How did you do this?"

The demon looked very confused. "That is weird. He has been so nice since yesterday. Look at this."

Baekhyun looked into Toben's eyes and spoke, "Hand." The hellhound instantly placed his paw in the pet-keeper's palm.

The Devil narrowed his eyes. "What even." He came closer to the two and nearly shoved his palm into the black-coloured monster's face. "Toben, hand."

Instead of following, the hellhound blew fire onto the Devil's skin. While Chanyeol wasn't affected by the same as he too possessed hellfire, he did feel the heat and pulled back his limb. "Ah!"

Baekhyun gasped at this and gave the hellhound a stern gaze. "Toben, that's not nice." The monster only yipped as if sending a little apology to the demon.

Baekhyun put Toben down. "Vivi, come play with Toben." A cloud like monster with no features or limbs came floating and walked away with the hellhound towards the other side of the room.

"I can't believe this," the Devil shook his head. He then turned to look Baekhyun in the eyes, stating, "You have to teach me. Whatever it is that you do to make him behave."

Baekhyun titled his head cutely. "I don't do anything."

The devil tsked. "There must be something. All the monsters, including Toben, listen to you."

"I'll have to think," the demon pursed his lip, seemingly already thinking deeply about it.

"It's okay, you can take your time," spoke the Devil. "I have to return to the office and... talk to Jongin. I'll see you tomorrow. I think it'll be better to leave Toben here for the time being. Will that be fine?"

Baekhyun blinked and smiled at him. "Sure."

***

"So do we find another way to close the place down?" Jongin sat with his legs folded on the office chair.

Chanyeol was in his seat behind the desk. "That's not important anymore. He tamed Toben."

"So, we're letting this place run?"

"I did not say that," the Devil interjected. "But we'll deal with that later. Right now what I need to focus on is getting Toben to listen to me. He's been like this ever since he was born _even though_ I'm his master. Till now I always thought he was beyond hope."

The demon seemed disappointed with how the situation turned out. "Well, I guess it's your call. I hope you're not doing this because you think he's too cute."

Chanyeol scoffed. "It has nothing to do with him being cute."

A grin appeared on Jongin's face. "So you do think he's cute."

The devil chose to remain mute.

***

Chanyeol walked into the shop the next day to find Baekhyun vacuuming the carpet with a white cloth tied around his head. The scene was rather adorable because a bunch of young monsters seemed to have a great time playing around the vacuum cleaner.

Standing behind the demon, Chanyeol coughed to gain his attention. Baekhyun jumped in surprise but smiled upon seeing the Devil. "Hello, welcome back."

"Hi, what are you doing?" asked Chanyeol, looking around.

"I was cleaning the place a little, I'm almost done," responded Baekhyun. "The little ones here wanted to play with the cleaner."

The devil nodded. "So, did you figure out how can I make Toben behave?"

"Let me put this away first," spoke the demon, gesturing to the cleaning equipment in his hand. "You can sit on the carpet."

Chanyeol did as Baekhyun asked and while he waited for the demon to return, a small squirrel like monster came and decided to sleep on his thigh. When the pink haired man returned, he sat down next to Chanyeol and placed his hand on the squirrel, patting its head gently.

"Well, to begin, we'll have to colour your hair," suggested the demon.

Chanyeol ran a hand through his white locks. "Colour my hair?"

"Yes," Baekhyun smiled.

A while later Chanyeol was sitting on a chair in one of the rooms with a black apron tied around his neck. Behind him, the demon stood wearing gloves and applied something to his hair, probably the dye.

"So, why did you become a monsterkeeper?" Chanyeol asked with his eyes closed. He had been wondering about it since the last time. Not a lot of demons liked being around monsters because of how troublesome they could be.

"I wanted to ever since I fell," answered Baekhyun in a soft tone as he continued to work on the Devil's hair.

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Compared to you I'm obviously very young, only a few hundred years old. The first job I was assigned here required working with some on-site monsters. I formed a good relationship with them and eventually it became something of a dream to open a pet keeping space like this," elaborated the demon.

Chanyeol coughed awkwardly. "And now the dream has come true?"

"It has," said Baekhyun. The Devil could hear the smile in his voice. "I saved as much as I could for the last 200 years."

"That's amazing," replied Chanyeol as he tried to ignore his emerging guilt. After all, he did try destroying the place Baekhyun saved up for years to afford. He was also technically supposed to come up with more ways to do so.

There was silence for a while before the demon spoke. "Are you hungry? I can get you some chocolate."

Chanyeol thought for a little before agreeing. Baekhyun called for a monster named Mongryong to bring some and after a fews seconds the little thing waddled into the room with a twix on his head. The devil picked it up, "Thank you."

The two talked about chocolates until it was time to wash the hair colour away. Baekhyun placed Chanyeol's head in the sink he used to bathe monsters and softly let cool water do its work. "I love cleaning monsters," he commented casually.

"I'm not a monster," said the Devil, amused rather than upset.

"It's not very different though," teased Baekhyun.

Once he had washed the hair, the demon first dried it with a towel and then with a hairdryer. Chanyeol was sitting on the chair again when Baekhyun brought out a mirror. "Ta-da!" he chirped as he pointed the mirror in the Devil's direction.

Chanyeol stared at his reflection. He looked exactly the same except his hair was a pink the same as Baekhyun's. He did not know how to react to the change. "So, my hair is pink now?"

Baekhyun put the mirror down and grinned. "Yes."

"And how will this help in getting Toben to behave?" he questioned.

The demon spoke delightedly. "Oh. It won't."

Chanyeol blinked. He felt tricked and some sort of anger began to brew within him. When the devil was angry, nobody wanted to be on the other side of it (at least that is what he thought). However, when Baekhyun began to giggle, he wasn't able to express any of it.

The demon stepped forward and ran his fingers through Chanyeol's soft pink strands and talked happily. "I just thought before beginning, this would look nice on you."

The devil only stared at him wordlessly so he continued, "And it does suit you very well— Wait. Why are your ears so red?"

Baekhyun genuinely seemed confused. His expression then twisted into one of worry. "Oh no. Are you allergic to hair dye?"

As if breaking out of a reverie, an embarrassed Chanyeol waved his concern off. "It's nothing. Ignore the ears."

The devil then cleared his throat and stood up. "Let's begin now that you've... coloured my hair. Anyway, I-I guess it's not too bad since... you like it."

The two exited the room and entered the lobby once again. "Now, what do we do for Toben to like me?" repeated Chanyeol from before.

Baekhyun bit his lower lip and hummed, "I think I know." He walked towards a corner in the room where a big bag lay next to some bowls from which a few monsters ate their food. Chanyeol followed to stand next to him.

The demon's hand went in and emerged out of the bag with some of the monster food in it. He spoke sincerely, "I think you should eat some of it."

Chanyeol's eyes widened. "You're not serious are you? I should eat monster food?"

Baekhyun nodded his head wisely. "It'll help the two of you bond when Toben realises that you eat the same food and aren't actually that different."

Suspicious, the Devil picked up one of the biscuit like things and cautiously licked it. He didn't even have the time to register the taste with how loud Baekhyun started laughing as he threw his body onto a cupboard for support.

"Oh my god. I didn't think you'd actually do it," he wheezed and the devil was surprised because it was his first time hearing Baekhyun make a sound other than giggling or speaking.

When the demon continued to laugh, Chanyeol's face turned red, both because of his mortification at being fooled and because of how cute Baekhyun seemed laughing. He ended up sighing, "This isn't working. I should just... leave."

The words seemed to have an instant effect on Baekhyun who stopped laughing and had panic cross over his face. "Oh no. I'm really sorry. I was just joking. I really didn't think you'd take it seriously." Somehow, it was the demon who had been playing tricks on Chanyeol yet it was he who felt bad about bringing the demon's laughter to an end.

Baekhyun grabbed Chanyeol's arm and made him sit next to him, both leaning against the cupboard behind. "I'm serious now, I promise. Tell me, how much time do you spend with Toben?"

The devil considered it for a moment. The demon seemed earnest this time around. "None, if I can help it," he spoke with a rather sulky voice.

"From the start?" Baekhyun asked.

"Well, he was born the runt of his litter. That's why he is the smallest of them all. But apart from this and being extremely disrespectful, he was the same as others. I treated him the same as the rest of my hellhounds until he got so naughty that I had keep him separately," explained Chanyeol.

The demon hummed softly. "I think that's where the problem is."

"What do you mean?" Chanyeol tilted his head.

"Toben is just a monster who requires more attention and care than the rest of your hellhounds, which he never received. And being separated from them, he also didn't have the opportunity to make friends," elaborated Baekhyun. "I think you just need to spend more time with him. Tell me, have you ever fed him?"

"No," responded Chanyeol. "Heechul did that, from as far away as he could."

"Exactly," nodded the demon. "He won't listen to you until he knows he can trust and rely on you."

That day when the devil returned to his office, everyone who looked at his hair was surprised. Jongin, on the other hand,   
seemed somewhat exasperated.

However, Chanyeol didn't mind any of them for now he had new determination. He would go to Paradise the store everyday to take care of Toben and, with Baekhyun's help, gain the hellhound's trust.

***

"You're right on time today," smiled Baekhyun when Chanyeol entered the shop the next day.

"How so?" asked Chanyeol as he walked towards the demon who was arranging the stuff toys on the shelves.

"Its almost time to feed them," explained the demon. "You should help feed Toben today."

"Okay," shrugged Chanyeol. "This will be a first." He paused before speaking. "Are you arranging the toys by their height?"

Baekhyun giggled and nodded.

"Let me help you," offered the devil. He could do this much for the help Baekhyun was offering him with Toben.

The two worked together until it was time to feed the monsters. The demon brought over the bowl Toben usually ate from. It even had a sticker with the hellhound's name.

"Here," huffed the demon as he placed a bag of the monster biscuits Chanyeol had licked before next to the bowl. "Just scoop some and put it in when Toben comes."

Chanyeol nodded and waited. Eventually, Toben emerged from a flap on the door and walked towards his bowl. Upon spotting Chanyeol next to it, he paused in suspicion. Quickly, the devil scooped some food, "Come eat, Toben."

The hellhound moved forward and experimentally sniffed the food Chanyeol put into the bowl. The devil huffed, "Oh, come on! I wouldn't poison you."

Toben took a bite of a biscuit, and upon realising that it is his usual food, started eating rapidly. The devil couldn't help but grin. Toben loved food much more than he hated Chanyeol. In the distance, Baekhyun clapped and gave the devil a thumbs up.

The rest of the while in the shop, Chanyeol assisted the demon in his daily tasks and got an opportunity to explore the few other rooms in the store where monsters roamed free and unsupervised, formed cliques and played games together.

Finally, upon seeing the time, the devil spoke to the demon who had been stroking the feathers of a bird monster next to him, "It's time for lunch. I should go eat so I can be at office on time."

Baekhyun stared at him for a few seconds before replying. "I'm hungry too. Maybe we can eat together."

Somehow, Chanyeol was inwardly giddy hearing this. With Baekhyun, he always had a nice time. "Okay, what do you want to eat?"

The two of them found themselves at the Taco bell next door with two tacos each. However, rather than touching the actual food, Baekhyun kept sipping on the cola and munching on the cinnamon twists. As they talked, Chanyeol learnt that the demon liked sweet things. It suited the demon. The devil couldn't help but shake his head with a small smile.

***

Lunch together became a routine in the coming week. The devil would come to Paraside, feed Toben and help the demon with chores. The hellhound had stopped questioning him when he fed him and ate without a care as he always would.

When Chanyeol walked into Paradise on a particularly hot day, Baekhyun came up to him excitedly and continued bouncing in front of him.

"What is it?" asked the devil, amused.

"Today is a big day for you," informed Baekhyun, grinning secretively.

"And why is that, if I may ask?" spoke Chanyeol, folding his arms.

"Well," said Baekhyun, licking his lips. "You get to bathe, dry and brush Toben today."

The devil's eyes widened. "Me? I must do all of that?"

Baekhyun was smiling so widely that his eyes were barely visible with his skin bunched up. "Yes! It'll be a great opportunity for your relationship!"

Chanyeol seemed unsure. "But don't monsters hate getting cleaned?"

"Well, some of them do," explained the demon. "But, Toben was very obedient when I bathed him the last time. He didn't utter a sound throughout."

To Chanyeol's despair, however, Toben made lots of sounds as he hopped around the tub while he tried to aim the shower head at him. The entire process of cleaning the hellhound took triple the time it should have.

Even after spending so much energy troubling Chanyeol, Toben still had some left which he used in running around the lobby with his newly shining fur. The devil had to eventually give up on chasing him and collapsed against the cupboard where he had once before sat with Baekhyun.

"Speak of the devil," he thought when the pink haired demon joined him. Sitting next to each other on the carpet, their shoulders rubbed together. Chanyeol closed his eyes as he tried to bring his heart rate down.

"He really tired you," giggled Baekhyun, facing the other.

"That he did," agreed the devil and in a moment of instinct, tilted his head to rest against the demon's shoulder.

Somehow, neither of them said anything about it. To Chanyeol's surprise, however, soon after, he felt his hair tingle. Baekhyun had brought his arm around and soothingly played with his now pink hair. The development was new, but it also brought a sense of peace. In Chanyeol's fatigued state, it was the best feeling ever.

***

The devil had a sloppy smile look on his face when he went into his office later. He kept thinking about the pet-keeper's fingers softly twisting his locks and the warmth of his skin every time it brushed against his scalp.

Lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice Jongin sitting across his desk until he settled on his rotating chair. The demon had a grave expression on his face.

"Why are you looking like that? You need to start smiling more," pointed out Chanyeol, trying to tease the other.

"Chanyeol, what have you even been doing?" questioned the demon, not paying attention to the other's remark.

Before the red-eyed man could respond, Jongin continued, "You've been going to that place to play everyday and I know it isn't to find ways to shut it down."

The demon's words were like a prick that bursted the pink bubble of happiness Chanyeol had formed around himself. Instantly, he felt annoyed and defensive. "I told you I'm learning how to make Toben behave."

"Well, it has been more than a week since you've been doing that," retorted Jongin. "Heechul is still complaining. Didn't you tell him to leave it to you to solve the problem?"

"And I will solve the problem," insisted Chanyeol as he rolled his eyes.

"Would you really, though?" Jongin raised an eyebrow. "Would you be fine upsetting your little love?"

Chanyeol opened his mouth to respond but closed it when no words came out. Jongin just shook his head as if he already knew that this was how the devil was going to react and got up from his chair.

He paused by the door before he exited. "I'm really glad that you've found someone you like but you can't forget your responsibilities."

***

When Chanyeol walked into the store the next day, it felt like there was something heavy sitting on his heart. Having thought about it all night, he had come to the conclusion that he had to let Baekhyun know about everything, even though it would mark the end of their friendship.

Searching around the lobby, he couldn't find the demon anywhere.

"Baekhyun?" He called out. A few tiny, hamster like monsters came over and began to circle around him for fun.

"Hold on!" came the demon's voice from one of the rooms. "I'm a little busy here so you can sit down!"

It sounded like Baekhyun was cleaning a monster so Chanyeol settled at his now usual place by the cupboard and wondered about his relationship with demon.

Anything between the two of them was impossible. Their very motives were at odds. Baekhyun spent years setting up the pet-keeping space and Chanyeol was someone who wanted to destroy it.

And there was no other way he could think of to solve the problem. After spending days at Paradise, he had learnt why people would choose the store over the official monster keeping facility. No other demon could handle monsters the way Baekhyun could. They would always be safer and happier in the pink haired demon's hands than their owners themselves.

Chanyeol had to place his head in his palms. He really had hoped for something more. He had had flings with humans before but they were never meant to last and he hadn't wished for them to. However, even though he had known Baekhyun for less than a month, it was the first time he wanted something that would go on for a long time, perhaps forever.

The demon with his silly and adorable ways, his soft demeanour and occasionally wise words, made him feel something he hadn't ever felt before. He realised that. For all he knew, though, Baekhyun only saw him as a friend. Or worse, as a mere client he was assisting. Whatever he was up until now, soon he'd be an enemy to the demon.

As he wallowed in his despair, Chanyeol felt something wet around his elbow. Lifting his face up, he found Toben licking him as if in an attempt to comfort the devil. Unable to stop himself, Chanyeol grabbed at the hellhound and squeezed him into his chest. "What should I do, Toben-ah?"

Toben tried to escape the hold around him but the devil only pressed him tighter. Eventually, he gave up and began to lick Chanyeol's cheek.

Suddenly, a door opened and Baekhyun emerged with his classic smile. Out of surprise, the devil threw Toben away from his hold. The hellhound landed faraway on his paws.

"I'm thirsty," announced the demon when he spotted Chanyeol. "Let's go to the kitchen."

The devil stood up and followed Baekhyun into one of the rooms. It was small and covered in tiles. Chanyeol had been there once before. It had an electric stove and even a refrigerator.

The demon took out two glasses from one of the drawers and began to fill them up with water. "I've a customer picking up his monster in a little while. I had to clean the little one up thoroughly."

Chanyeol held his glass tightly while he watched Baekhyun empty his in one go. When the pink haired demon put it on the slab, he spoke up in a serious tone, "Baekhyun... I have something I need to tell you."

"What is it?" asked Baekhyun, not particularly paying attention.

"I—" Before Chanyeol could utter something further, he was interrupted.

"I know," said the demon quickly, raising his head to look at Chanyeol as if just processing what was happening.

"Huh?" There was visible confusion on the devil's face.

"I know you didn't leave Toben here with good intentions," explained Baekhyun in a voice too cute for the words he was saying.

Chanyeol was rendered speechless, his mouth hanging open like fish.

Baekhyun tried to laugh the entire thing off. "Don't worry about it. I took my revenge already." With that, the demon tried to move away to exit the room but Chanyeol quickly caught his arm and stopped him.

With their faces inches away, the devil could feel the other's breath on his face. "What do you mean?"

"You know, the hair colour and the dog biscuits." The demon tried to avoid meeting his eyes. It was he who should've hated this confrontation, thought Chanyeol, then why was Baekhyun acting like this? It wasn't much of a revenge either.

"How did you know?" The devil moved to asking the most important question.

"It wasn't hard to know," spoke Baekhyun, still looking at the floor. "I didn't think my request for the store would get approved in the first place. Then you showed up with Toben even though you already had the facility to keep him. You were surprised when you saw him behave nicely."

"And? You're not going to do anything about this?" prodded Chanyeol, his eyes sharply training onto the demon.

Finally, Baekhyun raised his head to meet his gaze and their faces inched closer. "No," the demon squeaked.

Chanyeol was bewildered. This wasn't how he had imaged the encounter to go. "Why?"

"Because," Baekhyun paused to lick his lips. "I know you won't do anything to Paradise. I trust you."

Chanyeol's eyes dropped to the demon's lips when licked them and stayed there. Baekhyun's words were, somehow, making Chanyeol's heart ache. "Why are you trying to get away from this conversation?" The devil's voice was really low this time.

Baekhyun stared at him for a while without speaking. Out of the blue, then, there was a blurred movement before Chanyeol felt some softness on lips. Baekhyun had kissed him.

When his surprise wore off, he closed his eyes and moved his lips against the demon's. His heart was beating so fast that he was afraid it would pop out of his body. There were so many thoughts floating in his mind that it was a whirlwind.

They pulled apart when they became breathless. Baekhyun began speaking instantly. "I didn't wanna talk like this because... I like you. And I don't like the uncertainty this brings..." He sounded sad, as if afraid that this was the end for them. And Chanyeol understood the feeling well.

"I like you too, Baekhyun," confessed the demon in a soft voice. "We don't have to be uncertain... we'll solve this... we—"

His words were cut by another attack by Baekhyun's lips and he attacked back just as hard. His thoughts were all disheveled again, moving all around his brain in a fury. Suddenly, a certain thought emerged as if thrown apart from all the others and he gasped into the kiss.

Baekhyun pulled away in confusion. The demon's entire face was flushed red, which was an extremely enchanting look on him. "What is it?"

"I had an idea," began Chanyeol. "It's not very clear yet... but it can work... if you're willing to. The fact that the monster keeping facility can't compete with Paradise is our problem, not yours. It is the facility that has to improve... and there's a way we can do that."

Baekhyun hummed, urging Chanyeol to go on. The two were pressed close, their chests almost touching. It was rather reassuring for the devil as he spoke.

"Maybe, Paradise can become a branch of the facility, or vice versa, and you can run both the places along with Heechul. The profits from both of them can be divided half and half. While it's initially going to mean a drop in profits for us anyway, with your help, I'm sure they would both see more customers. You can improve the facility like no one else can. You'll have much more space and monsters there to do whatever you want."

A beam appeared on Baekhyun's face. "I like this idea."

Chanyeol, however, remained apprehensive. "Are you sure? You don't _have_ to agree."

"I know," responded Baekhyun and playfully stuck his tongue out. "I really do think it's interesting. I've been to the facility before and... I think I can do a lot with it."

"You can?" Chanyeol's voice betrayed his hopefulness.

Baekhyun hummed in affirmation and then proceeded to mock glare at the other. "Now, can you please kiss me again?"

Chanyeol couldn't help but chuckle. "You really do like kissing, don't you?"

"You have a problem with that?" pouted the demon.

Chanyeol shook his head happily and leaned forward to kiss the pout away. However, from the corner of eyes, he spotted some movement near the room gate. When he turned his head to look clearly, he saw many monsters, including Toben and Vivi, watching him intently, as if studying whether he was a suitable match for their great pet keeper.

Out of surprise, the devil's hand shook, spilling onto himself the water from the glass in his left hand. He had forgotten he still held it.

Everyone present stayed silent. Chanyeol silently turned to stare back at Baekhyun. After a momentary pause, the demon started wheezing like he had just witnessed the funniest instead ever.

The devil's entire face was red. He wanted to protest but his eyes went soft when realised how pretty Baekhyun looked happy. The demon could laugh as much as he wanted at him. It was alright.

He had found his paradise, after all.

***

**_Epilogue:_ **

Chanyeol sat in office, flipping through files and signing them off. Jongin was there too, helping him review the documents.

"Why do we need so many plushies?" asked the demon, scanning through a purchase order.

"Hm?" Chanyeol looked up. "Baekhyun said we do."

"Wow, you are truly a goner," Jongin shook his head and picked up another document.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. A pair haired head poked itself inside, looking thoroughly like cotton candy. "Can I come in?"

Jongin turned around to see Chanyeol smile widely. "Of course you can," replied the devil.

"I think I should leave," announced Jongin when Baekhyun hopped inside. He did not want to see anything he shouldn't have to. He got up to head towards the door Baekhyun had just entered from. Neither of the two stopped him, already busy gazing at each other.

The demon sighed and left the room just as Baekhyun reached Chanyeol's side. The devil extended an arm and Baekhyun put his hand in the other's palm. Chanyeol gave him a sly smile and pulled him so that Baekhyun was almost straddling his lap.

"How are things down there?" asked Chanyeol, placing his hands on the other's back.

"It all fine now because of the ointment," replied Baekhyun sincerely. "I mean it was my first time so it was bound to hurt a little."

Chanyeol's ears turned red. "I meant... down in facility."

"Oh," squeaked the demon, turning red too. "It's been fine. Heechul is taking a while to adjust to the new ways. He's scared of leaving them uncaged."

Chanyeol nodded. "He'll come around."

After a pause, Baekhyun spoke again. "I'm hungry. Can we go for lunch a little early?"

Chanyeol's agreed gently. "Of course we can. Let's go."

"Yay!" cheered the demon, making Chanyeol chuckle. The two got up and headed towards the door.

***


End file.
